How To Build a House from Straw Bale and Mud

Warning! If you do not want to live in a straw bale house with a living roof and solar panels to power your satellite internet connectivity, DO NOT watch the video over the fold!

Because when you see this video of Nick Moser's straw bale house project, you will not be able to resist making your own natural house. The gorgeous timber framing which sets a spiral patterned layout inspires the craftsperson in you. The video of Nick merrily pitching clay onto the bale walls looks like so much fun, you will want to build a house just so you can vent your frustrations about the whole housing market collapse thing. Nick crawls over his green roof model, and only one hesitation remains: how will this house stand up against the weather? The news that the walls withstood Hurricane Ike closes the deal. Let's learn how to build a straw bale house!

In addition to holding out through Hurricane Ike, straw bale homes have received good reviews with respect to withstanding fires. The natural materials result in excellent heating and cooling properties. And the do-it-yourself aspect means you will have a home tailored to your concept of cool house design.

Nick Moser offers seminars on straw bale construction techniques. He was himself inspired while studying in South America. To whet your appetite for joining a seminar, Nick shares some of his straw bale house secrets: "The first layer is just clay and it sticks to the bales and as you move out, each layer has more and more sand. And sand adds strength and it keeps the water, if it does get wet, sand actually repels water."

If you are too far from East Texas to attend, check out the videos of the watermelon-fueled construction progress at Nick Moser's website, Thundergorge. You can make your reservation to participate in a workshop at the website as well.